Apple 'explains Face ID on-stage failure'

The company has blamed the Face ID glitch on a lockout mechanism triggered by staff members moving the device ahead of its unveil, according to Yahoo News. "People were handling the device for [the] stage demo ahead of time and didn't realise Face ID was trying to authenticate their face," an unnamed company representative is quoted as saying by Yahoo's David Pogue. At its launch event, the company had earlier described Face ID as being "Effortless" to use and more accurate than its fingerprint-based Touch ID system. Apple has confirmed elsewhere that Face ID is disabled after just two unsuccessful attempts, unlike Touch ID, which requires a passcode to be manually typed in only after five failed tries. The iPhone X is not due to go on sale until November, and journalists at the launch at the company's Cupertino, California headquarters were shown Face ID working in controlled circumstances.